INEC moves to allow prisoners vote in elections

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is collaborating with the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) to explore how inmates can be included in the country’s electoral process.

INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this during a meeting with the Comptroller General of the NCoS, Sylvester Nwakuche, at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja on Friday.

Yakubu referred to a Court of Appeal decision that upheld the right of inmates to participate in elections, noting that the ruling supports the right of citizens in correctional facilities to register and vote.

“We are aware that the right to vote is a human right which cannot be taken away from a citizen on account of time being served in a correctional facility. In many parts of the world, including some African countries such as Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa, where our officials observed elections, inmates exercised the right to vote,” Yakubu said.

He emphasized the need for a comprehensive legal framework that would ensure inmates can vote in compliance with existing electoral laws.

“As you are aware, an election is a process governed by law. Working together, we can seize the opportunity of the ongoing electoral reform for a clear legal provision that will specifically cover citizens serving time in our correctional facilities.”

Yakubu noted that INEC’s immediate plan is to seek the involvement of the National Assembly in order to address the legal and procedural aspects of implementing inmate voting.

“Our immediate task is to engage with the National Assembly for clarity and legal backing.”

He also recalled a number of discussions between INEC and the correctional service regarding how the process might work. These talks have included logistical issues such as facility access, engagement with political parties, voter education, and defining which inmates are eligible.

“The Commission is aware of the judgements of the Federal High Court in Benin delivered on 16th December 2014 and the Court of Appeal, also in Benin, delivered on 7th December 2018 pertaining to the right to vote by five plaintiffs awaiting trial,” he told attendees.

He cited both international and local legal provisions that support the right of inmates to vote, especially those awaiting trial.

“Based on the combined provisions of Article 25 of the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (1966) and Section 25 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) on citizenship, the court affirmed the rights of plaintiffs who were inmates awaiting trial to vote in elections.”

“However, the judges ruled that the right to vote is only excisable when asserted, as it is a choice to be exercised voluntarily by a citizen and not a duty to be imposed by force of authority.”

According to him, INEC and the correctional service had set up a joint technical committee to evaluate the necessary steps for inmate voter registration, polling unit creation, and media and observer access.

“We even set up a joint technical committee to review all the issues involved and advise on the way forward. You availed us with data on the locations and types of federal correctional facilities nationwide. You also provided us with statistics on the various categories of inmates, the majority of whom are on remand awaiting trial and who may actually be registered voters.”

“For our part, we raised the issue of access to the correctional facilities for voter registration, creation of polling units, and voter education. On behalf of stakeholders and for transparency, we also brought to your attention concerns about access to your facilities for observers and the media. Political parties also want to know if they will be allowed to campaign in the correctional facilities and appoint polling agents on election day. We believe that working together with you and the stakeholders, we can address these concerns.”

Yakubu pointed out that Section 12(1)(e) of the Electoral Act 2022, which limits registration to citizens not under any legal incapacity, needs to be clarified.

“Doing so will also clarify the provision of Section 12(1)[e] of the Electoral Act 2022 on voter registration, a precondition for voting in elections, which restricts the exercise to a Nigerian citizen who ‘is not subject to any legal incapacity to vote under any law, rule or regulations in force in Nigeria’. There are various interpretations as to whether this provision relates to inmates on death row, those serving life sentences, or those convicted of treason.”

“Our immediate task is to engage with the National Assembly for a clear legal provision on inmate voting. Thereafter, we can address the specific issues that may arise in the course of implementation.”

Yakubu’s comments followed Nwakuche’s case for the electoral body to extend some rights to prison inmates, particularly the right to vote.

According to him, there are over 81,000 inmates across the correctional centres, and about 66 percent of them are awaiting trials.

The Comptroller General also cited a recent court ruling that upheld the rights of inmates, especially those who are awaiting trials, to vote in an election.

In 2019, the Court of Appeal sitting in Benin, Edo State, affirmed the right of inmates across the country to vote.

The decision followed an appeal filed by five inmates on behalf of other inmates in Nigerian prisons to direct INEC to include their names in the voter register.

The court, however, refused to grant a request that INEC should liaise with the Nigerian Prisons Service to create registration centres at various prisons across the country.

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